Historic: 8-year-old Reilly Johnson crosses the finish line first in an event for the ages

Everyone knew the 100th running of the Dipsea Race would be special. Few could have guessed that an 8-year-old girl would steal the show.

With past champions chasing her on the course and cheering her from the sidelines, Reilly Johnson of Mill Valley became the 100th winner and the youngest champion of all time Sunday, winning the cherished 7.5-mile footrace from Mill Valley to Stinson Beach by fending off the challenge of three-time winner Melody-Anne Schultz.

"I chase my grandchildren around the house all day long," said Schultz, a part-time resident of Ross who said she was "ecstatic" to finish second to Johnson this time. "But I didn't think I'd be chasing a little girl in the Dipsea. Well done, Reilly."

Seven-time champion Sal Vasquez, considered the greatest Dipsea competitor of all time, presented Johnson the trophy along with former race president Jerry Hauke. Vasquez, a well-loved and mysterious figure who has not attended the event since 1997, took one look at Johnson and hoisted her into his arms like a proud grandfather. It was a picture-perfect moment for every member of the Dipsea family.

That tight-knit atmosphere that Dipsea runners and volunteers talk about was on display more than ever in celebration of the 100th race. More than 1,400 runners climbed the Mill Valley steps, slogged through Muir Woods, huffed up to Cardiac and careened down Steep Ravine to land in the arms of a smiling crowd full of neighbors and well-wishers.

They were greeted with refreshments, commemorative shirts and medals. Even those that battled injuries on the course or dehydration, seemed to take it with a smile. Everyone, it seemed, felt lucky to be a part of the magic of the day.

"I love this mountain and I love this event," said Bob Knox of Mill Valley. Knox finished in 100th place last year to earn bib No. 100 for the 100th race. "At first they said I was 98th, but when the final results came out a couple months later, I was 100th and I thought, well that's kind of neat."

The event's volunteers felt the magic of the day as well.

"I wouldn't miss it," said Kathleen McDonough, part of the finish-line togglers that help runners from the finish to First-Aid tent and beyond. "To see these people at the finish line, they go through an amazing range of emotions. It's like a birthing process."

There was one report of an 11-year-old boy taken to Marin General Hospital with a chest injury. Three people were given intravenous fluids at the finish line. One man appeared to have broken an ankle and another had a cut under his eye large enough to prompt a makeshift patch.

"There are 1,000 stories out there today and we have 100 years of 1,000 stories," third-place finisher Roy Rivers told the crowd as he accepted his award. "It doesn't get any better than that. We love this race. Here's to another 100 years."